BILL NUMBER: AB 1999	CHAPTERED  09/27/00

	CHAPTER   709
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   SEPTEMBER 27, 2000
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   SEPTEMBER 25, 2000
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   AUGUST 31, 2000
	PASSED THE SENATE   AUGUST 30, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   AUGUST 25, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   AUGUST 14, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   JUNE 29, 2000
	AMENDED IN SENATE   JUNE 20, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   MAY 26, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   APRIL 4, 2000

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Dickerson
   (Principal coauthor:  Senator Costa)
   (Coauthors:  Assembly Members Aanestad, House, Strom-Martin, and
Zettel)
   (Coauthors:  Senators Chesbro, Kelley, Knight, Leslie, Monteith,
Perata, Rainey, Sher, and Soto)

                        FEBRUARY 18, 2000

   An act relating to conservation camps, and declaring the urgency
thereof, to take effect immediately.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1999, Dickerson.  Conservation camps.
   (1) Existing law establishes conservation camps, and provides for
the transfer of inmates as specified to be housed and employed
therein.
   This bill would state findings and declarations of the Legislature
regarding the benefits to the state of an expanded conservation camp
program, and would direct the Department of Corrections to maximize
the availability of conservation camp qualified inmates, subject to
specified health and safety requirements.  This bill would declare
the intent of the Legislature to continue to expand the conservation
camp program, and would direct the Secretary of the Resources Agency
to provide by November 1, 2001, a report to the Legislature and
Governor on additional inmate and civilian conservation camp
construction or expansion needs .
   This bill would also require, subject to the appropriation of
funds for this purpose in the annual Budget Act, the Department of
Forestry and Fire Protection to reactivate a 20-person crew module at
17 specified conservation camps in order to provide necessary
training, vehicles, and equipment, subject to the appropriation of
funds for this purpose.
   (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares the following:
   (a) California has experienced dramatic increases in wildfire and
flood losses, and in the cost to fight these losses during the last
decade.  Annual fire losses have doubled in the last five years.
Handcrews to fight wildfires or floods and other emergencies are in
short supply.  On average, California has imported 187 paid fire
crews each fire season over the last five years.  During the 1999
fire season, the state expended twenty million dollars ($20,000,000)
to import and use these crews.  During this period, some low-cost
inmate crews in conservation camps were unable to assist due to lack
of tools, transportation, and supervision.
   (b) Watershed health across the state has declined creating a
large backlog of environmentally sensitive, labor intensive,
restoration work ideally suited for inmate crews and California
Conservation Corps crews.
   (c) Conservation camp inmates provide a very economical way for
the State of California to deal with the foregoing problems while
minimizing organizational buildup.  Each inmate provides an annual
return to the state of over twenty-six thousand dollars ($26,000) in
productive work, while costing taxpayers only thirteen thousand
dollars ($13,000) per year.
   (d) Conservation camps have provided over 2,000,000 work-hours of
emergency fire and flood assistance to the state and over 4,000,000
work-hours of resource, environmental, and community service in a
single year.
   (e) Lower disciplinary and custodial costs result due to the fact
that the hard-working emergency response team activities curtail
disciplinary problems associated with idle time in prisons.
   (f) Shortened incarceration time helps nonviolent inmates who
reduce their sentence by performing meaningful work.
   (g) Conservation camps provide significant rehabilitation
benefits, as recidivism rates are reduced by the opportunity to learn
strong work ethics, teamwork and job satisfaction, and by assisting
communities, farms, and the state's natural resources.
   (h) Minimum-security conservation centers cost less to construct
than "hardwall" facilities and considerably less to operate.
  SEC. 2.  It is the intent of the Legislature to continue to expand
the conservation camp program to provide additional beds for
low-level inmates and at the same time provide additional
capabilities to prevent and deal with fire, flood, earthquake, and
other emergencies in the State of California in a more cost-effective
manner.  Therefore, the Secretary of the Resources Agency, after
consultation with the Secretary of the Youth and Adult Correctional
Agency, the California Conservation Corps, and other benefiting
agencies, shall by November 1, 2001, report to the Legislature and
the Governor on additional inmate and civilian conservation camp
construction or expansion needs.
  SEC. 3.  The Department of Corrections shall maximize the
availability of conservation camp qualified inmates, subject to all
of the following requirements:
   (a) Necessary health and safety requirements shall be met at other
facilities of the department.
   (b) Public safety screening and training conditions and standards
shall be maintained.
   (c) The need for additional inmate positions at existing,
expanded, or new conservation camps shall be considered.
  SEC. 4.  Subject to the appropriation of funds for this purpose in
the annual Budget Act, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
shall reactivate an additional 20-person crew module at each of the
following 17 conservation camps, for the purpose of providing
necessary training, vehicles, and equipment:  Baseline, Bautista,
Delta, Devils Garden, Eel River, Fenner Canyon, Gabilian,
Growlersburg, McCain Valley, Oak Glen, Owens Valley, Preston/Pine
Grove, Puerta La Cruz, Salt Creek, Sugar Pine, Trinity River, and
Valley View.
  SEC. 5.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order to improve the ability of the conservation camp program
to provide emergency services in event of fire, flood, or earthquake
at the earliest possible time, it is necessary that this act take
effect immediately.
